


Reality

by Snow_Leopard_777



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Mamabear Alya, Marinette gives out from exhaustion, Missing Tikki, Protective Adrien Agreste, Sulking kwami, Ticked parents, Villanous Adrien Agreste, Work continuation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-11
Updated: 2018-09-11
Packaged: 2019-07-10 22:19:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15958721
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snow_Leopard_777/pseuds/Snow_Leopard_777
Summary: Marinette finally gives in from the exhaustion of fighting her partner for years. Once the villainous Chat Noir realizes who Ladybug is seconds away from using Cataclysm on the fallen hero, he has split seconds to make the decision that will decide his fate.





	Reality

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Risks](https://archiveofourown.org/works/9055936) by [maely1234](https://archiveofourown.org/users/maely1234/pseuds/maely1234). 



> This is a continuation of the fic Risks https://archiveofourown.org/works/9055936 by maely1234. It will be easier to understand if you go read it first!   
> I may do more chapters, I'm not sure yet.

“It’s over, Ladybug.” Chat Noir snarled as he stalked towards her. He refused to let himself feel guilt as she drug herself across the rooftop, her earrings beeping incessantly, trying to get away from him and the akuma. “Cataclysm!” He shouted, and felt the dark magic surround his hand. Before he touched her, however, he watched as her transformation faded- leaving a nearly unconscious Marinette in Ladybug’s place. He stopped instantly. The woman he had to fight, the woman who kept him from getting his mother back, was the woman he was in love with? He knew he couldn’t hurt her, Marinette was too pure and he loved her too much. Instead, he reached forward and used his cataclysm on the largest box he saw.

He would collect the ashes and tell Hawkmoth that the earrings had been destroyed with his cataclysm, the magic no longer exists. But first, he had to get Mari somewhere safe. She was more important than bringing back someone he didn’t really even know. He scooped her up gently, not seeing the reporter crouched in the shadows. He gently kissed the girl’s head, and bounded away towards the bakery, Alya not coming out from behind the service door until he was gone. She could only be glad she wasn’t live-streaming for the Ladyblog…

 

 

______________________________

 

 

Chat tried not to panic when Mari refused to wake. The little red kwami she should have was MIA, Hawkmoth was constantly generating different akuma’s, each more dangerous than the last, in an effort to draw the spotted heroine out, and Marinette would not respond to anything he tried to wake her. The cold cloth on her forehead heated in record time, the soft taps he left on her cheek were ignored, and the smelling salts didn’t so much as make her sneeze.

 

As far as he was into trying to heal Mari of whatever was wrong, he did not hear the pounding on the stairs, nor the sound of the trapdoor slamming open. What he did hear, was Tom Dupain-Cheng’s bellow of rage when he saw the notorious black cat villain standing over his daughter. Chat jumped to the side of Mari’s head, certain that if Alya and Sabine had not come up that moment, Mari’s father would have rammed him through the wall. As it was, he had to deal with Alya firing questions at him at an impressible rate.

 

“Alya!” He finally snapped. “Shut up and help me help Mari! There’s something wrong, and I can’t figure out what it is!”

 

The cajun growled at him, “Maybe it’s the fact that you’ve been fighting her years! Did you ever consider that?” She shouted, tears thick in her voice.

 

“I didn’t know it was her,” the blonde’s voice sounded broken. “I made a deal to bring my mother back, but I wouldn’t have done it if I knew the cost.”

 

Alya considered the blonde, finally seeing just what it was that convinced Mari to save him those two months ago. There was a broken boy underneath the cocky facade, a boy that just wanted his mother back. “Why?” She finally asked. “You’ve always treated Mari differently from everyone else. Why?”

 

“She gave me another chance, even when most would have given up on me. Even before she took that vine for me, she was giving me second chances.” A green light washed down his body, Alya gasping when she realized who Chat Noir really was. “I’ve been in love with her ever since she scolded me because of a misunderstanding. She was so confident and strong… But then I gave her my umbrella and she could hardly speak to me. I thought she hated me,” his voice trailed off into a whisper. “I love her, and she only ever spoke to me as Chat. I don’t understand why she gave _him_ so many chances but still hated _me_.”

 

Alya took a deep breath and let it out. “Marinette’s never hated you, Adrien.” Tom and Sabine disappeared down steps when Alya started her move forward, they knew Adrien was a good kid. “She’s been in love with the Adrien part of you since you gave her your umbrella, you jerk.” Alya fumed.

 

Adrien felt his world begin to spiral out of control. Marinette hadn’t _hated_ him, but instead _liked_ him. He began to feel a little hope flutter in his chest at the possibility of being able to redeem himself completely in his princess’s eyes, but quickly shrunk back down upon remembering all the trouble he’d caused her as Ladybug. He’d be lucky if she ever so much as looked at him again after that.

 

He thought back to the night after she got out of the hospital, due to Hawkmoth and his rose akuma, La Belle Rose. He remembered her sweet voice asking him why he’d protected her, even as he burned with his own questions as to why _she’d_ protected _him_. His answer was simple, he’d shrugged and told her that she was fatally injured protecting him, as well as the fact that he was used to seeing her help others during an akuma attack. Her’s, however, confused him. “ _You’re like me.”_ She’d told him. “ _Just another scared kid trying to figure out what their supposed to be doing, who they are… You no different from every other teenager out there.”_

 

Adrien felt a tear roll down his face as he stared at Marinette’s sleeping face, Alya having long since disappeared down the trap door. The last memory he had of her, her as Marinette, him as Chat Noir, before he’d stopped visiting was her begging him to help Ladybug with Hawkmoth and akumatized villains. The next day in class, her injury from protecting him had re-opened when Kim and Alix bumped her into the corner of the table on accident. She had rushed out of the room, only telling Alya that she was going to talk to Ladybug about protection from _“That Hawk-butterfly guy.”_

 

He thought of the simple pleasure Marinette seemed to have every time he came to visit her, or hid her away from the akuma before going to join it in fighting Ladybug. Now he knew why she’d always seemed so happy that he was taking time to help someone. She’d been hoping he’d join her in her fight against wrong doing.

 

Adrien looked down at the ring he had on his finger, then up at the little cat-like kwami that often refused to acknowledge his existence. “Plagg, _please_ , tell me how to fix this. I really messed up this time, and I need help. _Please!_ ” The teenager begged, they both knew that there was a good chance Marinette was dying from over-exerting herself on top of all the injuries she’d received.

 

The kwami sighed. “You need her kwami, Tikki. That’s the only way to help the kit start healing. Even Junno or Trixx could help more than I can.” Plagg explained. “Go back where she detransformed. Maybe Tik’s there, maybe she’s headed here. I don’t know, but you’ll need to bring some cookies.”

 

 

______________________________________

 

Adrien slowly climbed down Marinette’s ladder and headed towards the kitchen area, Plagg sitting on his shoulder. The Dupain-Cheng’s and Alya were sitting at the island. Adrien cleared his throat, and asked, “Do you have any cookies I can have? Plagg says Tikki can help, but only if she’s recharged.” He told them, awkwardly swaying on his feet. He wasn’t surprised when Sabine and Alya angrily sat at the counter in silence, but was surprised when Tom got up and grabbed a jar off the counter.

 

“Take as many as you think you’ll need to help her.” He said, offering the whole jar to the teen.

 

Plagg perked up when he smelled the bakery below them. “You don’t happen to have any cheesy bread, do you?” He asked hopefully. Tom blinked slowly with wide eyes at the little speaking floating cat, then slowly nodded, reaching into the fridge and pulling out a loaf of camembert bread, offering it to the little god. “My favorite!” The being yowled.

 

Tom cleared his throat. “Yeah, it’s Mari’s too.” The large man’s voice cracked at the end of his sentence, and he quickly turned his back to the teen and cat. He was so mad at Adrien for his actions, but at the same time pitied him for the wish for a mother, and the little cat creature was just too much like Mari for him to take right then. He only turned back around when he heard the sky-light above Marinette’s room slam shut.

 

_________________________________________

 

Adrien scoured the rooftops in search for the elusive kwami. He’d already passed the ashes off to the newest akuma with the explanation of what had happened when he used cataclysm on the hero, and the akuma went to take the ashes back to Hawkmoth. He finally found the little bug hidden by a service door on a near-by rooftop. It looked like the critter gave out trying to get home to Marinette.

 

He scooped her up, giving her a cookie to snack on while he headed back. His princess would be okay, if he had to take on Hawkmoth’s entire array of akuma’s as well as the man himself to make sure of it.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Small funny facts about this fic: I kept writing Hawkmoth’s name as Papillon.   
> I kept trying to spell seemed as seamed.   
> I nearly gave my sister a complex trying to convince her to read it.   
> I know the Peacock kwami’s name is Duusuu, but I’ve read so many fics where the name is Junno that I couldn’t help myself.


End file.
